SusSH Compost Team visit Loop Frome Project

Mel Harvey and Ruth Leonard-Williams from the SusSH compost team recently took a research trip to visit the inspirational Loop Frome project which is revolutionising resource use and composting - with the aim of sparking similar projects here in South Hams.

The purpose of the trip was to see first-hand how businesses and groups of households in the community are closing the loop on food waste and converting it back into top-quality compost for planters, gardens, and allotments, whilst providing employment in the town, improving soils, increasing biodiversity, and growing more food.

The team will be returning in February with a minibus of interested people from South Hams (provisionally Feb 10th - watch this space)!

The guide for the day was Peter Macfadyen, founder of Loop Frome and a key project creator and connector in the community.

The trip started at the Station Cafe, one of 10 local businesses that pay for food waste collection from Loop. The team heard how the project originated with the support of the groundbreaking social enterprise Edventure, which takes long-term unemployed young people through 4-6 month social enterprise training leading to the business development and logo design.

Peter shared some key points about how the business works and showed the team one of the colourful locally-designed and built electric trikes which collects and transports food waste and other materials like woodchip and sawdust around town.

The team followed Peter on his speedy trike to 'Compost Central' - a compost creation site in the town's park. Here, 3 big Ridan composters convert food waste into semi-composted material. After several weeks it is moved into a series of maturation bins (large aerated wooden boxes) where the end-product is a sweet-smelling compost that tests have shown is bursting with microorganisms, beneficial for soil health. This is then given back to the participating businesses for free and sold to others in the community, thereby funding the staff and project costs.

The team then enjoyed a visit to Broadview Community Garden, one of many sites across town where groups of householders take food waste to a Jora tumbling compost bin. At each site, keen volunteers keep the composting process monitored and many people across Frome are part of the compost WhatsApp group to share tips and solve composting questions.

After lunch in another participating café, the day ended with a surprisingly fascinating trip to Frome Medical Centre. Arriving unannounced the team had hoped to peek through the windows at their compost system, but were offered a cuppa by their Sustainability Manager Richard Podmore and heard about the multi-faceted Green and Healthy Frome project in which the practice is involved.

The site provides an amazing example of a closed-loop composting system.  Food waste from the practice café and staff compost caddies is combined with woodchip from their own beautifully laid hedge, to feed the Jora compost tumblers. This rich compost bursting with life, is then used in the staff raised beds to grow veg which is shared amongst the staff.

The team left feeling very inspired and keen to plan a return trip when you can join us to explore the possibilities of making a similar project a reality here in the South Hams.

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